Satish Chandra, J. - (1.) THIS is a Defendant's appeal. The suit was for specific performance of a contract of sale. Finding a conflict of opinion between Sugna v. Kali Ram, 1966 AWR 641 and Chetan Singh v. Hira Singh, 1969 ALJ 189, a learned Judge has referred this appeal to a Division Bench.
(2.) ON 19th December, 1962, the Plaintiff -Respondent sold some plots of agricultural land to the Defendant -Appellant for Rs. 1,000/ -. Thereafter the parties executed an agreement for reconveyance of the sold property to the Plaintiff within five years for the same sale consideration. In July, 1967, the Plaintiff by notice requested the Defendant to execute a sale deed after receiving the sale consideration, but the Defendant without any justifiable cause refused to do so. Hence the suit. The Defendant raised several pleas of which only one survives now. It was urged that the plots in dispute came under consolidation operations and in lieu of the plots covered by the agreement between the parties the Defendant was allotted a chak consisting of entirely new plots. The Defendant was hence incompetent to execute a deed of sale in respect of the plots mentioned in the agreement. The contract was discharged by reason of supervening impossibility.
(3.) THE trial Court accepted this plea and dismissed the suit, but on appeal the decree was reversed and the suit decreed. The lower appellate Court held that the decision in Sugna v. Kali Ram (Supra) proceeded upon conflicting views and hence it was difficult to apply it. He preferred to rely upon the later decision in Chetan Singh v. Hira Singh (supra). Section 30, U.P. Consolidation of Holdings Act, provides: With effect from the date on which a tenure -holder enters, or is deemed to have entered into possession of the chak allotted to him, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, the following consequences shall ensue - (a) the rights, title, interests and liabilities -f (i) of the tenure -holder entering or deemed to have entered into possession, and (ii) of the former tenure -holder of the plots comprising the chak in their respective original holdings shall cease; and (b) the tenure -holder entering into possession, or deemed to have entered into possession, shall have in his chak the same rights, title, interests and liabilities as he had in the original holdings together with such other benefits of irrigation from a private source, till such source exists, as the former tenure -holder of the plots comprising the chak had in regard to them; (c) lands vested in the Gaon Sabha, or any local authority and allotted to the tenure -holder shall be deemed to have been resumed by the State Government under the provisions of Section 117 or Section 117 -A, as the case may be, of the UP ZA and LR Act, 1950 (U.P. Act 1 of 1951) and settled with the tenure -holder; (d) the rights of the public as well as of individuals in or over land included in a chak following a declaration made under the proviso to Sub -section (2) of S.19 -A shall cease to be created in the land specified for the purpose in the final Consolidation Scheme; and (e) the encumbrances, if any, upon the original holding of the tenure -holder entering, or deemed to have entered, into possession, whether by way of lease, mortgage or otherwise, shall, in respect of that holding, cease and be created on the holdings, or on such part thereof, as may be specified in the final Consolidation Scheme.;